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For uploading photos and entering a competition: click here.
The October competition is open to images on any subject. It is also a PRINT competition. Mounted prints
must be submitted at the club meeting October 24. Digital copies of the images must also be uploaded to the
competition site.
With the exception of December, the Plano Photography Club (PPC) conducts monthly competitions to
encourage members to practice their art and stimulate a thoughtful, creative approach to improving their photography.
Members may submit up to two image entries to each monthly competition. For each month’s competition, a guest
judge scores all entries, awarding both Judge’s Points and Place Points (i.e., 1st Place, 2nd Place, 3rd Place,
Honorable Mention and "Best of Show"). In addition, the judge will provide verbal critiques on a portion of
the photos. The results of the competition, along with the judge’s comments, are presented at the next PPC
meeting. For example, entries to the January competition are submitted in January and the results presented at the
February meeting.
Members begin each PPC competition year (May through April) with zero points and accumulate both
Judge’s Points and Place Points for end-of-year recognition.
Nine of the eleven competitions in the PPC competition year are devoted to images in
a Digital format (i.e., a JPEG file), and two are devoted to images in a Print format (i.e., a printed photograph).
A fixed subject is assigned by the PPC Board for six of the competitions, while the five remaining competitions are
open (i.e., no fixed subject assignment). The PPC Board consists of the PPC Officers.
For image entries in a Digital format, PPC utilizes a
Competition Site for electronic entry submission. Specific instructions for
submitting entries are available in a downloadable Competition Site
Instructions Portable Document Format (PDF) file. Image entries in a Print format are physically submitted
at the PPC meeting for months with a Print format competition. New User access privileges to the Competition Site can be requested by
accessing the site and following the instructions for New User Registration Requests at the bottom of the page.
Note all competitions listed below are for images in a Digital format unless otherwise noted. A historical
record of the competition subjects from prior PPC competition years is available in a downloadable Historical Record
Portable Document Format (PDF) file.
- May 2011: Planes, Trains and Automobiles
- June 2011: Open
- July 2011: Shadows and Silhouettes
- August 2011: Open
- September 2011: Events
- October 2011: Open (Print Format)
- November 2011: Wide-angle Perspective
- December 2011: No competition
- January 2012: Texture
- February 2012: Open
- March 2012: Black and White (Print Format)
- April 2012: Open
- May 2012: Night or Low Light
- June 2012: Open
- July 2012: Repetition
- August 2012: Open
- September 2012: TBD
- October 2012: Open (Print Format)
- November 2012: TBD
- December 2012: No competition
PPC members may submit one or two images to each month’s competition. All entries must conform
to these Image Guidelines and the subject as defined for the given month’s competition (when applicable). Detailed
descriptions of many of Club’s subjects are available in a downloadable Description of Competition
Subjects Portable Document Format (PDF) file.
Any image that has been awarded one or more Place Points (1st, 2nd, or 3rd Place or Honorable Mention) in any
previous PPC competition is not eligible for submission. This restriction includes photos that are substantially
similar to images that received Place Points in any previous PPC competition. (Prior to the 2011-2012 competition
season, Honorable Mention winners did not receive a Place Point. Those images are still eligible for
resubmission.)
- All image entries must originate as a photograph created by the entrant, i.e., images may not be merely graphic
art created on a computer.
- Processing of an image may be done in the camera and/or by the entrant using post-processing software or other
techniques. Added design elements e.g., graphic art, must also be produced by the entrant.
- Images composed solely of other people’s artwork (e.g., a wall mural or painting) are not acceptable. If
other’s artwork is included in an image, the photographer must contribute additional compositional elements,
such as unique lighting.
- The subject of an entry in a month with a fixed subject assignment must conform to the assigned subject in order
to receive the maximum number of points and/or avoid disqualification (see Judging below). The content of an entry for a
month with an open competition can be any subject of the entrant’s choosing
- Images that depict the desecration of religious symbols are not permitted in any PPC competition.
- Images that show more female nudity than a bikini would show, or more male nudity than a swimsuit would show are
not permitted in any PPC competition. Note: see-through fabrics are considered the same as exposed skin.
- Images must not contain any text, titles or watermarks identifying the entrant.
Images may be derived from various sources including film negatives, film slides, digital cameras, or
other devices that produce a photograph-like image such as a scanner.
The following requirements apply to images in a Digital format (only):
- Images must be submitted electronically to the
Competition Site. Entries for a particular month’s competition may be submitted beginning
the 1st day of the month through the last day of the month (unless otherwise noted on the Competition Site).
- Details on file naming and image titling are outlined on the Competition Site. The entrant’s name or other
identifiers must not appear within the Image Title. Note only the Image Title is displayed when the judge views
the image (neither the file name nor the entrant’s name is displayed). Image Titles (for all images) are also
displayed during presentation of the judge’s comments and critiques at PPC meetings - additionally, the
names of entrants whose images received either Place Points (i.e., 1st Place, 2nd Place, 3rd Place, Honorable Mention
and "Best of Show") will be identified. Not explicitly judged, Image Titles should not be expected to bear
on the Judge’s scoring. For Photojournalism competitions, Image Titles should not be necessary – or used – to convey
the storytelling value of the image itself.
- While specific requirements can be found on the
Competition Site, entries should have a file size of 500K or less and must be in a JPEG file
format with 1024 max pixels in width, 768 max pixels in height. Note, however, the Competition Site automatically resizes images down to
within the maximum allowed dimensions. Resolution (e.g., pixels per inch) does not matter and is not used.
The following requirements apply to images in a Print format (only):
- Prints must be physically submitted before the end of the PPC meeting to be eligible for that month’s
competition.
- Digital versions of each print must also be submitted to the competition site, as usual. These will not be
judged but will be used to build the slideshow for displaying images while listening to the judge’s commentary.
- The entrant’s name, level, and the entry’s title must be indicated. The top of the image should also
be indicated. In months with a Print format competition, pre-printed labels are provided by PPC and are available
at the PPC meeting. Note only the Image Title is revealed when either the judge views the image or when the image
is presented during PPC presentations. Not explicitly judged, Image Titles should not be expected to bear on the
Judge’s scoring. For Photojournalism competitions, Image Titles should not be necessary – or used – to convey the
storytelling value of the image itself.
- Images must be mounted but not framed. A top mat is optional.
- The physical dimensions of the submitted entry must be no larger than 16" x 24".
- The size of the actual image must be no smaller than 64 square inches and no larger than 16" x 24"
(if not matted). For panoramic competitions, images should have an aspect ratio of 2:1 or larger (e.g., 3:1, 4:1,
etc), and must have an actual image size no smaller than 96 square inches and no longer than 24"
(if not matted).
- While images may be printed by the entrant or a photo lab / print service, the latter should not be allowed to
alter the image itself (e.g., through color correction, white balance, or cropping).
In a given PPC competition year, members may compete in one of three levels:
- Beginner: Learning the basic operation of the camera. Learning the basic concepts of composition,
exposure, lighting, and post-processing of images.
- Advanced: Comfortable with the technical aspects of the camera. Knowledgeable to proficient in
the concepts of composition, exposure, lighting, and post-processing techniques for creating images. May be
skillful in more than one genre of photography, for example, landscape, portrait, macro, photojournalism, still
life, etc.
- Master: Can teach others the concepts of composition, exposure, lighting and post-processing of
images. Has provided significant service to PPC as an active officer. Continues to provide service to PPC as, e.g.,
an active teacher, tabletop host, or activity leader. Possesses the skills necessary to provide meaningful critique
of others’ images. Skillful in several genres of photography (e.g., landscape, portrait, macro,
photojournalism, or still life).
New members can choose, upon joining PPC, to compete at either the Beginner or the Advanced level.
Members are encouraged to compete based on photography skills (no sandbagging, please). Once a member has selected a
level, they must remain at that level for the remainder of the PPC competition year (May through April).
Members in the Beginner level who earn 35 or more Place Points in a PPC competition year are
automatically moved to the Advanced level in the next PPC competition year. Beginners, who earn fewer than 35 Place
Points in a PPC competition year, may choose to either remain in the Beginner level or move to the Advanced level.
Promotion to the Master level is by invitation of the PPC Board. Judge’s Points, Place Points, overall
artistic merit, and service to PPC are all considered for promotion.
PPC searches outside the club for photographers, who are highly respected, recognized in a particular
area of photography, or otherwise have judging credentials. While judging is done within accepted guidelines, it
should be noted that judging photographic images is very subjective as individual judges have different experiences,
perspectives and aesthetic values. Judges’ names may not be published in advance of the competition.
- The judge may select 1st Place, 2nd Place, and 3rd Place images and up to three Honorable Mentions. The judge has
sole discretion in deciding which places to award, if any, including honorable mentions.
- In a monthly competition with a fixed subject assignment, the judge’s scoring should reflect the
appropriateness of images to the assigned subject. The judge also has sole discretion in disqualifying an image that
he or she deems does not adequately meet the assigned subject. Additionally, the Contest Officer may also disqualify
any entry that violates the Image Guidelines anytime before it is presented to the
judge (see Appeals below).
- The judge awards a total of between 6 - 15 Judge’s Points to each entry based on its own merit and not in
competition with other images. Each of the three levels (i.e., Beginner, Advanced, or Master) is also judged
independently of other levels. Judge’s Points are awarded for interest (2 - 5 points), composition (2 - 5 points), and
technique (2 - 5 points).
- Place Points are awarded for 1st Place (10 points), 2nd Place (6 points), 3rd Place (3 points), Honorable Mention
(1 point) and "Best of Show" (1 point).
An entrant may appeal a disqualification made by the Contest Officer. There is no appeal process for a
disqualification by a judge - or an appeal process for judge’s scoring. Upon disqualification, the Contest
Officer notifies the entrant and allows the entrant to withdraw the entry, withdraw the entry and submit an alternate
entry, or appeal the decision to the PPC President. If the PPC President upholds the disqualification, the image must
be withdrawn. As no alternative images can be submitted once judging begins, if an entrant is uncertain about whether
an image meets the Image Guidelines, it would be advisable to submit
the entry as early as possible to allow time for possible substitution.
Monthly and yearly recognitions given to members include:
- 1st Place images are published in PPC’s newsletter (The Flash!). Other images that
place are published at the editor’s discretion.
- "Photographer of the Year" is awarded annually to the photographer who earned the most
Judge’s Points, including both Digital format and Print format Judge’s Points, for the closing
PPC competition year. In case of a tie, each of the tied winners receives the award.
- "Digital Image of the Year" is selected by a judge from all Digital format images
receiving 1st or 2nd Place throughout the closing PPC competition year. A plaque is given to the first place winner
and ribbons to send and third places.
- "Print Image of the Year" is selected by a judge from all Print format images receiving
1st or 2nd Place throughout the closing PPC competition year. A plaque is given to the first place winner
and ribbons to send and third places.
- Photographers in each level with the most Judge’s Points plus Place Points, including both
Digital format and Print format points, for the closing PPC competition year are also recognized. Plaques are given
to first place winners and ribbons to second and third place.
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